Speakeasies During The 1920's

Speakeasies, meaning to keep "keep low," were famous secret bars, during the 1920s, during the Prohibition Era. When the 18th amendment was established, it made any form of manufacturing, selling, or transporting of any alcohol illegal. Bars and salons shut down and forced law enforcement to raid all liquor stores; any suspicion of supplying or consuming alcohol could put you in jail. This law left people needing help to find a way to continue drinking alcohol. This was until Speakeasies began opening in major urban cities. "Speakeasies were where people could come and secretly drink alcohol in a hidden bar; to gain access, you needed to know a secret password or have a membership." Speakeasies were a big deal and played a large part in many

While the wealthy stayed afloat during the 1920s, the lower and middle classes greatly struggled. This was shown through “workers' wages and the accessibility to luxuries like a speakeasy.” "The disparity between social classes during Prohibition was even more evident than the acceptability of quality speakeasies over poor speakeasies where only known to the wealthy, and the nicer speakeasies were also more protected by the wealthy" The socioeconomic divide was becoming even more substantial, and this showed itself in the culture of speakeasy as well. “The lower and middle classes were merging, and the upper classes were getting smaller.” With the mafia on the rise, the lower class had a new opportunity to make fast cash with a new emerging market. With the "unemployment rate at 24.9 and 12,830,000 without jobs'' Americans had to get creative with earning an income, and speakeasies were the way to go. Materialism and consumerism were a vital part of the "roaring twenties," with industrialism booming, people felt the need more than ever to consume and buy unto the newest products. Something new was being produced daily, and with the war behind them, Americans had more pocket money to spend on unnecessary items. Marketing played a massive role in making people feel they needed to buy the newest product for a better life. Credit cards played into this marking, reeling consumers in with the idea of “spending without

Jay Gatsby was frequently accused of being a bootlegger throughout the book and was known for hosting the largest parties in New York; the parties were not kept secret but were highly mysterious. Speakeasy had this same idea, and the two were remarkably similar; Gatsby's house party could even be identified as a speakeasy. Gatsby's parties were exclusive to invite-only, and like speakeasies, there was an array of different types of people in attendance. "These parties attracted flappers and included dancing and, of course, drinking. It is unclear how the alcohol was supplied, pushing the idea of Gatsby being a bootlegger"; the suspicion of his occupation also stemmed from the fact that he has never clarified how he came into such wealth so quickly and young. Tom Buchanan has always been suspicious of Gatsby's occupation but makes several accusations of his suspicions throughout the book. "He and Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. I picked him up as a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I was not far from wrong". Tom's accusation was correct of Gatsby being a bootlegger. This revolution clears up the question of how Gatsby became of his wealth and how he could continue spending so lavishly. Bootlegging money was an endless stream of income that never ran dry, and this point is